|| CF Correspondent ||

Sri Lankan skipper Dimuth Karunaratne said Bangladesh is missing ace all-rounder Shakib al Hasan badly in the ongoing three-match series against the host.

Sri Lanka clinched the series by winning the opening two games as the tourist surrendered meekly on both occasions to earn a series win after a gap of 44 months.

According to Dimuth Bangladesh paid the price of not having Shakib al Hasan, who opted to skip the tournament for personal reasons,  considering it had played an big impact on the balance of their team.

 ‘’The main thing was Shakib [Al Hasan], he played a huge role. I think that’s why we felt that without Shakib they may struggle a little to balance the side. I think we also lifted our game after the World Cup, we have been playing as a team, with high confidence, and I think that’s why we have done so well,’’ he said.

‘’ If you take the World Cup Bangladesh did really well because of Shakib and Mushfiqur, those are the two batsmen that carried them through the World Cup. They batted really well and kept scoring big runs, and the team was as a result scoring 250, 300-plus.

Once Shakib isn’t there they have to fill that hole in both the bowling and batting, I can’t see anyone who can replace him. And at that time they had to bring in two players for the batting and bowling, and that’s why they couldn’t balance the side and struggled as a result,’’ he added.